Digital Commons Network^™

Volume 29, Issue 1 Full Contents

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Clinic-In-A-Box: A Portable, Software-Defined Cyber Range For Realistic, Scenario-Based Cybersecurity Training, Ethan Chumley, Aaron Nair, Royce Yaezenko, Joshua Payne, Veronika Kyles, Paul Wagner, Robert J. Honomichl, Ryan Straight, Shengjie Xu

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

Realistic, hands-on cybersecurity training has traditionally depended on fixed infrastructure such as dedicated lab hardware, cloud subscriptions, or permanent network connectivity, limiting where and how often it can be delivered. This paper presents the design and implementation of a portable, scenario-based cybersecurity training platform housed in a single travel case and built from commodity hardware, type-1 hypervisor virtualization, containerized service orchestration, and software-defined networking. The platform clones, isolates, and resets complete lab environments on demand, allowing the same physical system to support repeated classroom, workshop, or field deployments with minimal manual reconfiguration. Training scenarios are grounded in generated organizational profiles …

Business Educational Skills For Successful Aviation Fire Officers, Leo Sedlmeyer

All Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Purpose: This paper explored the business educational skills aviation fire officers use to manage airport fire departments.

Design/Methodology/Approach: The methodology was a qualitative phenomenological study design. The participants began with 10 aviation fire officers from airports throughout the USA who were at least 28 years old, in a leadership role, and had at least 10 years of experience as aviation fire officers (Buttenschon, 2016). Saturation was reached at seven during the interview phase. The limitations of this study were gaining participants' trust and obtaining comprehensive information from them.

Findings: Six themes emerged from this study, with the top three identified: …

Succession, Sustainability, And Service: Workforce And Leadership Challenges In Rural Municipal Governments, Dewayne Armstrong

Certified Public Manager® Applied Research

Rural municipal governments across Texas and the United States face a convergence of workforce and leadership challenges that threaten long-term service delivery and organizational sustainability. An aging public-sector workforce, persistent recruitment and retention constraints, and fragile leadership continuity interact in ways that uniquely affect small and rural communities. Public works departments, which play a vital role in infrastructure maintenance and regulatory compliance, are particularly vulnerable as experienced employees approach retirement without adequate succession pipelines or mechanisms for institutional knowledge transfer. At the same time, small-town governments face ongoing difficulty attracting and retaining qualified personnel due to constrained fiscal capacity, geographic …

Blueprints For Resilience: A Delphi Study Of Architects' Competencies In Gulf Coast States, Richard J. Cantu

Dissertations

This study identifies and defines core competencies for licensed architects practicing in Gulf Coast states, emphasizing their critical role in protecting health, safety, and welfare (HSW) amid the region’s unique environmental challenges. Hurricanes, flooding, climate-induced risks, and other coastal hazards demand specialized expertise that existing architectural competency models do not adequately address. Leveraging Delphi’s research design, this study engaged Gulf Coast experts to develop and refine a region-specific competency framework across four iterative rounds. The findings highlighted the essential knowledge, skills, and abilities required for resilient and sustainable architectural practice. The study advances architecture’s human capital development (HCD) by addressing …

Religious Practice And Attitudes Toward Immigration And Racial Justice In America, Amya Douglas

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

This study aims to understand how Christians’ knowledge of Scripture and involvement in the church have an impact on their social-political views, specifically, racial justice and immigration. By using the survey responses from the 6th wave of the Baylor Religion Survey, more frequent church attendance and reading Scripture were correlated with a greater recognition of racism in terms of being against white supremacy and white nationalism, supporting racial justice when asked about racial gaps, and possessing greater support for immigrants. This study highlights the distinction between religious affiliation and religious practice, and it suggests that certain policy sentiments can be …

Decision Making For Community Resilience: Applications In Flooded Transit Systems And Shared Housing, Mubarak Iddrisu

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Addressing climate-induced flooding and housing insecurity requires decisions that are technically sound, locally meaningful and feasible to implement. In public transit systems, flooding can damage infrastructure, increase travel time and reduce access to essential destinations, especially for older adults. Shared housing offers an alternative housing model where staff must balance affordability, compatibility, service exchange and participant choice when pairing home providers with housing seekers. In this dissertation, I examine how analytics and decision modeling can support community resilience across these two domains. I use spatial analysis, machine learning, optimization and matching theory to develop practical decision-support workflows. Chapter 2 proposes …

Artificial Intelligence And Technology - Joni Full Issue July 2026, Angie Holzer

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

No abstract provided.

Ai-Powered Logistics For Small Nonprofits: A No-Code, Sub-$10 System For Real-Time Distribution Across 41 Locations, Rishi D. Chundury

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

Small nonprofits often struggle to coordinate multi-site distribution campaigns with limited staff, tight budgets, and little access to technology. This article describes how Eye on July Corp., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Omaha, Nebraska, built an AI-powered system to manage the distribution of 20,000 free safety glasses across 41 community locations for July 4th. The system was built without any coding using three commercially available tools, where Airtable stores the data, Make.com runs the automation, and Anthropic's Claude API provides the intelligence, all at a total cost of under $10. The platform collects stock counts from partner locations, analyzes inventory to …

An Analysis Of The Sport Fan You Don’T Want To Encounter: Willpower And Fan Dysfunction, Anna M. Minor, Daniel L. Wann

Findings in Sport, Hospitality, Entertainment, and Event Management

Dysfunctional sport fans are classified as fans who have impaired function as it relates to socialization and social groups in the sport context, leading them to be highly confrontational and frequently complain within sporting environments (Wakefield & Wann, 2006). These fans are frequently loud, obsessive and even violent (Wann & James, 2019). The current research attempts to provide insight into this degree of excessive fandom behavior. Although previous work has examined demographics, alcohol, media consumption, and game attendance among dysfunctional fans, research has yet to examine the level of willpower (i.e., self-control) among these persons. With consideration that dysfunctional sport …

Case Study: Feasibility Of Creating A Simulated Mobile Data Center For Cross-Disciplinary Academic Programs, Stanley Mierzwa, Christoper J. Schultz, Iassen Christov, Michael Fagioli, Thomas Ikeda, Reinaldo Jaramillo, Giolian Sanagustin

Center for Cybersecurity

This case study examines the potential to envision, create, and deploy a simulated mobile micro data center solution that can be easily replicated and transported between locations and educational settings. The coined term for this solution is the Mobile AI-Centered Data Center (Mobile ACDC), which provides students with a platform to construct, in a hands-on fashion, such a solution and navigate the product to gain greater competencies and understanding of the components found in a data center. Instructor and student feedback assessments from the pilot classroom modules and laboratory experiential learning activities indicate that such a solution helps to improve …

Cognitive Load In Law Enforcement Decision Support Systems: A Human-Centered Evaluation Of Traditional And Ai-Enhanced Mdts, Benjamin Burchfield

Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the cognitive and usability associations of mobile data terminal (MDT) systems used by law enforcement officers during routine operational tasks. Grounded in Cognitive Load Theory (CLT), Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the research examines how MDT interface design and interaction methods including AI-enhanced and speech-enabled interfaces are associated with perceived cognitive workload, technology acceptance, and operational performance during simulated traffic stop scenarios. Using a framed field experiment with active law enforcement officers, the study evaluates relationships among user experience, perceived cognitive load, task performance, and officers’ willingness to adopt MDT technologies.

The Nist Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework: Adoption Challenges And Opportunities, Gillian Kennedy, Devin Patel, Humza Sheikh, Paul Wagner, Robert J. Honomichl

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

Artificial intelligence (AI) is being adopted at an exponential rate to improve efficiency, decision-making, and cybersecurity, but its rapid integration introduces new and often poorly understood risks, including system errors, algorithmic bias, data privacy concerns, security vulnerabilities, and ethical dilemmas. This paper examines how organizations are implementing AI and evaluates the National Institute of Standards and Technology's AI Risk Management Framework (NIST AI RMF) as a tool for managing these risks. It reviews the benefits of AI adoption alongside the risks emerging from its use in business and broader society and examines the legal and ethical challenges organizations face when …

The Lived Experience Of Inconsistent Legal Recognition: A Phenomenological Study Of Job Burnout And Moral Injury In Florida Correctional Officers, Jeffrey A. Snipes

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative transcendental phenomenological study investigates the lived experiences of Florida correctional officers (FCOs) regarding inconsistent legal recognition and the divergence between functional mandates and legislative definitions. Utilizing Dr. Jonathan Shay’s moral injury framework, this research explores how statutory marginalization functions as a precursor to burnout. A transcendental phenomenological research design was employed; 21 officers were screened using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-HSS) followed by semi-structured interviews with a nine-participant subsample.

Data analysis followed Creswell’s spiral procedures to identify themes describing the essence of these experiences. Findings suggest that inconsistent recognition as first responders catalyzes moral injury, exacerbating burnout and …

Child Sexual Abuse: What Utahns Need To Know, Brie Sparks, Susan R. Madsen

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

Child sexual abuse is a serious and often hidden issue affecting children, families, and communities in Utah. It is frequently misunderstood and underreported, leaving many children without the support they need. Misperceptions about who is at risk and how abuse occurs can make prevention more difficult. Addressing child sexual abuse requires greater awareness, education, and a shared commitment to creating safe environments where children are protected and supported. Preventing abuse and reducing its long-term impacts is a critical responsibility for individuals, families, and communities in Utah.

Controversy Associated With Red-Light Traffic Cameras, Alan D. Smith, Anna Abdulmanova

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

New American Women (Immigrants And Refugees) In Utah, Robyn C. Blackburn, Vanessa Tuttle, Yvette Young, Susan R. Madsen

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

Year after year, the topic of immigration features centrally in US public policy discussions and debates. This focus is not surprising, given that the US is home to more immigrants than any other country in the world. While policy discussions often focus on immigrants who lack legal authorization to be in the US, most immigrants are legal residents (77.0%).¹ An immigrant is any person who lives in a country that is not their country of usual residence or nationality.² The US immigrant population includes naturalized citizens (i.e., those who entered the US legally and became citizens), lawful permanent …

Holistic Strategies For Optimizing Municipal It Operations And Cost Efficiency, Joseph Yazdanpanahi

Certified Public Manager® Applied Research

Municipalities work to deliver secure and impactful IT (information technology) services while often working within tight budget constraints. To address this problem, this article offers an experience-based and comprehensive framework to optimize municipal IT operations. It emphasizes leveraging automation, streamlining hardware and software management, and forging strategic partnerships to drive cost savings and efficiency gains. Designed to equip municipal IT leaders with practical tools and insights, this article aims to help modernize IT processes.

Homelessness And Business: Perception, Affect And Opportunity, Asatur Nor-Ashkarian

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the relationship between business owners and individuals experiencing homelessness within urban commercial districts in the United States, arguing that the dynamic is shaped primarily by spatial concentration, uneven power structures, economic pressure, and public framing rather than simple conflict between competing interests. Drawing on stakeholder analysis, business perception surveys, a mixed-methods study, and an original content analysis of 50 news articles spanning 23 states, this thesis identifies a consistent pattern: business owners broadly perceive homeless presence as negatively impacting safety, cleanliness, and consumer behavior. Local news media reinforces those perceptions through predominantly negative framing of homeless individuals. …

News Media Coverage Of Measure Ula: How The Story Of La’S Big Project To Address Homelessness And Affordable Housing Got Sidetracked By The Story Of Big Real Estate, Christopher R. Martin

Faculty Publications

“Measure ULA,” named after United to House LA, was approved by voters in Los Angeles in 2022 to create a dedicated, long-term funding source for solutions to homelessness in LA, including funding the construction of affordable homes and preventing homelessness by helping tenants stay in their homes. The funding would come from a new tax on the most expensive real estate transactions in L.A. (i.e., mansion tax), and would affect fewer than 4% of all property transactions. At the end of three years of local news coverage about Measure ULA from the Los Angeles Times and LAist, the news audience …

Du Undergraduate Showcase Abstracts: Research, Scholarship, And Creative Works, Sophia Wismar, Henry Staats, Allison Metzler, Chloe Puckett, Rachel Levine, Christa Kilpatrick, Scott Wolf, Joe Walsh, Grace Doolittle, John Engebreston, Zoe Lopez, Christopher Aaby, Audrey Duff, Timothy Sisk, Katelyn Lamberton, Angela Narayan, Gilkah Argueta, Habiba Samir, Girena Tesfazghi, Genet Kenore, Sinit Tesfamariam, Effley Brooks, Abi Newell, Megan Doherty, Natalie Baer, Lexi Blood, Talya Riciputi, Jessica Jimenez, Devin Hernandez, Lynn Clark, Taj Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Allen Rutman, Mira Pronobis, Tess Carson, Anna Sher, Frankie Stroud, Tamra Pearson D'Estree, Alyssa Wilson, Emily Melnick, Jenalee Doom, Yihang Gao, Gwendolyn Geiger, Noah Gettle, Scott Nichols, Clare Ayoub, Cara Dienno, Sunny Walker, Zoe Hansen, Maya Wheeler, Addison Rice, Patrick Martin, Sanjana Acharya, Daniel Mcintosh, Amanda Mckellips, Calli Cain, Justin Blake, Peter Sokol-Hessner, Natalie Miller, Max Weisbuch, Sophia Dellota, John Macikas, Charlotte Snow, Mark Siemens, Zoe Lynch, Alex Huffman, Prachi Shah, Jason Roney, Halcyon Levi, Nicole Herzog, Andrea Koly, Daniel Linseman, Annie London, Xi Yang, Avery Zwisler, Jane Smith, Chaz Contag, Michael Kerwin, Lucy Rand, Grace Schroeder, Michelle Rozenman, Nissa Tapper, Guiming Zhang, Mateo Mazariego-Halpern, Keith Meyer, Julie Do, Dakota Park-Ozee, Travis Herink, Kara Neu, Jonathan Plomin, Eve-Odine Duchaufour, Debbie Gale Mitchell, Tennyson Anderson-Stricklin, Lily Treitz, Samantha Rosenberger, Sierra Griffith, Finley Joseph, Daniel Sampson, Emmy Davis, Skyler Kasnoff, Evon Lopez, Vivian Nguyen, Cassy Young, Franklin Sellner, Martin Tobon, Ila Graham, Zach Billings, Holden Hedit, Decatur Boland, Paul Kosempel, Cory Chandler, Jay Mahoney, Sam Dragan, Susan Dagget, Yarrow Ator, Heidi Vuletich, Owen Weber, Andrew Kloeppel, Petersen Gray, Mandi Schaeffer-Fry, Razleen Bassra, Bryanna Rodriguez, Christina Blue, Taubie Sanders, Rachel Epstein, Luke Milburn, Camryn Evans, Ezra Martinez, Mary Westwood, Gabri Notov, Robin Tinghitella, Lilou Cabrol, Eli Barbour, Juliet Mendik, Selma Myers, Zac Wise, Noah Fahlin, Michelle Knowles, Abigail Hopper, Michael Greenberger, Romi Laclair, Sarah Watamura, Sabrina Efroymson, Casey Barker, Sydney Seltzer, Bryn Yehle, Jennifer Hoffman, Sara Garcia, Ryuka Nagamine, Trevor Briggs, Remy Le Boeuf, Elena Krone, Eileen Farrell, Regan O'Rourke, Elena Roel, Greg Mortimer, Ali Ayoub, Stefani Langehennig, Caitlin Turk, Logan Scmid, Stefan Chavez-Norgaard, Karen Kim, Tatiana Peccedi, Courtney Cassidy, John Sebesta, Rhianna Lewis, Janice Bening-Lacek, Vivian Lawless, Mckenna Hanson, Jeffrey Amidon, Riya Joshi, Ram Ambre, Brady Worrell, Perrin Schneider, Ali Azadani, Brooke Agulnek, Lyndsie Salvagio, Elise Siemanowki, Yan Qin, Andre Allen, Melodie Nguyen, Megan Livengood, Abby Reams, Saffron Hartreeve, Bri Wylie, Sarah Brookman, Mariah Loiacono, Green Russo, Abhia Lodhi, Gabrielle Welsh, Nika Spehar, Shahked Levin, Evrim Baykal, Kimberly Chiew, Jocelyn Torres, Kailey Hicks, Mykaela Tanino-Springsteen, Audrey Bellows, Akam Chahal, Madeline Tepper, Shannon Murphy, Alexa Fonseca, Deborah Han, Cassandra Perez, Oluwatoyin Alaba, Julia Roncoroni, Vy Nguyen, Nana Burn, Sarah Sasse, Rubin Tuder, Anthony Gerber, Nancy Lorenzon, Christine Vohwinkel, Camryn Gunter, Tristan Weber, Sam Rommel, Brian Michel, Muskan Fatima, Alannah Oleson, Kira Frey, Edward Garrido, Beckett Morris, Kerstin Haring, Drew Middleton, Abigail Walpert, Liam Dee, Gabby Ishaw, Cole Carnes, Maddie Weiser, Claire Fox, Valeriia Vlasenko, Kateri Mcrae, Riley Smith, Abigail Templin, Kushani Rajapaksha

DU Undergraduate Research Journal Archive

Abstracts from the DU Undergraduate Research Showcase.

Building Cultural Wealth: A Look Into The 40x40 Council’S Rise East Plan, Camille L. Batiste

Master's Theses

This research began as an effort to understand how community-based organizations in neighborhoods that have experienced generational economic disinvestment address the financial and cultural wealth gap in their communities. With the 40x40 Council and its work in East Oakland serving as the case study, it is evident how this organization mobilizes to reverse the impact of cultural erasure and wealth exclusion, helping Black residents not just live, but thrive. With an enriched understanding of how the 40x40 Council frames its approach, implements its vision, and develops its longevity, the Rise East Plan utilizes an alternative wealth-building strategy that centers community, …

Aliterate Consumers' Miscomprehension Of Product Warnings, Haeran Jae

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Uneven Ranks: Geographic Deepening Of The All-Volunteer Force, Christine Hogestyn

Master in Public Policy Theses

Who is enlisting in Fiscal Year 2025, and what state-level characteristics are associated with military enlistment rates, service selection, and recruit quality? This study documents the geographic landscape of U.S. military accessions during a period of recruiting recovery, filling a gap in the literature by providing a current, empirical description of who enlists and from where in today’s All-Volunteer Force. Drawing on personnel data from the Department of War, the U.S. Census and Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates, and a federal dataset of military installations, I analyze 203,987 new accessions across the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps from …

The Impact Of Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, And Employee Engagement On The Intent To Leave The Law Enforcement Profession For Police Officers, Veronica Lynn Dougherty-Denny

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In today’s dynamic organizational environment, worker factors such as job satisfaction, employee engagement, organizational commitment, and psychological contract fulfillment are vital for organizational success. This study examined their perceived relationship with police officers’ intent to leave the law enforcement profession. The problem addressed worked to understand factors influencing retention, including psychological contract breaches and workplace outcomes. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the perceived relationship between job satisfaction, employee engagement, organizational commitment, and intent to leave the law enforcement profession all housed within the psychological contract. Five research questions addressed these variables and demographic factors (gender, years …

Beyond Detection: Drink Spiking And Drug Facilitated Sexual Assault Prevention, Response, And Systems Gaps On College Campuses And Beyond, Neve Palmeri

School of Business Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

When Metal Theft Becomes A Life Safety Crisis, Alan Saquella

Publications

By any traditional measure, scrap and metal theft has long been categorized as a property crime, costly, disruptive, and frustrating, but rarely viewed as an immediate threat to human life. That framing, however, no longer reflects reality. What was once considered a nuisance crime has evolved into something far more consequential, particularly when it intersects with critical infrastructure.

Building on the risks outlined in “Scrap Disposal: When the End of the Supply Chain Becomes a Brand and Public Safety Risk,” by Marcos Fontes, a more serious dimension comes into focus when essential systems are targeted. In these cases, the impact …

Is Customer Always Right? A Common Service-Related Issue In The Sport Arenas, Steve Chen, Christy L. Trent, William Wellman, Jose P. Garcia

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

Crime, Consumers, And Clustering: A Geomarketing Analysis Of Retail Behavior Across Urban Markets, Mark J. Sciuchetti Dr., Jianping Huang

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Covid 19 Job Demands On Public Sector Employees’ Organizational Commitment: The Mediating Roles Of Work Engagement And Job Burnout, And The Moderating Role Of Supervisor Support, Benjamin R. Kaufman

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

United States citizens rely on state government employees to provide essential public services. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these employees responded by administering both routine and novel procedures to protect public health, often placing them on the frontlines and at increased risk of contagion. Concurrently, the pandemic-driven economic downturn created budget shortfalls that threatened the job and financial security of the state workforce. Together, these conditions substantially increased job demands for state government employees.

Guided by the Job Demands–Resources (JDR) Model, this study examined how COVID‑19-related job demands influenced state employees’ work engagement, job burnout, and organizational commitment, and whether supervisor …